Poster #112 - Relations Between the Bilingual Advantage and Academic Outcomes: Evidence from Infants, children, and Young Adults

• In Event: 3-206 - Poster Session 13
  In Poster Session: PS 13 Section - Language, Communication

Integrative Statement

A substantial body of research suggests a cognitive advantage among bilinguals compared to monolinguals due to their experience juggling two different languages throughout their lifetime. Specifically, because bilinguals rely on inhibitory mechanisms to decide what language to use in specific contexts (Green, 1998), such hypothesis is contingent upon a strong effect of a transfer of verbal to nonverbal task performance (Bialystok, 2001; Bialystok, 2004). While previous meta-analyses provide mixed finding on the consequences of bilingualism, it is necessary to evaluate this hypothesis considering individuals at different developmental stages. Substantial meta-analytic evidence for or against the bilingual advantage would have important implications for current and future models of bilingualism. The main goal of this meta-analysis is to examine the hypothesis of the bilingual advantage in cognitive control among infants, children, and adolescents. The first research question concerns whether bilinguals’ performance on executive function (EF) tasks is superior to that of monolinguals and whether performance on EF tasks varies as a function of developmental stage. The second research question examines the specific cognitive processes for which a bilingual advantage might exist. The third question aims to investigate the extent to which performance on EF tasks explains the differences in academic performance among bilinguals and monolinguals. Electronic searches were conducted including all possible studies on bilingual advantage up to March 2018 in the ERIC, MEDLINE, PsychARTICLES, and PsychINFO databases which yielded a total of 17,152 studies of which 213 fulfilled the pre-established inclusion and exclusion criteria. Analysis of effect sizes will consider moderator variables such as socioeconomic status, age, gender, and the relative proficiency. All effect sizes will be examined base on the type of EF (hot or cold) and on different developmental stages. Also, an analysis of EF task performance will be conducted to determine the extent to which EF predicts the academic outcome measures obtained from the same studies. Finally, and an innovative feature that distinguishes the current work from prior meta-analyses, is to examine the quality of research design employed across all included studies based on the quality indicators for correlational and causal-comparative research (Thompson, Diamond, McWilliam, Snyder, & Snyder, 2005). Preliminary results thus far indicate that the average effect size for the bilingual advantage hypothesis is d = -.13, suggesting that bilinguals have do not show an advantage overall cognitive when compared to monolinguals. For specific EF processes outlined by prior researchers (e.g., Miyake et al., 2000), the average effect for working memory is d = -.20, the average effect for inhibitory control is d = -.66, and the average effect for cognitive flexibility (shifting) is d = - .08 When broken down by developmental stage, the average effect for preschool children (infancy to four years old) is d = -.19, the average effect for pre-adolescent school-age children (i.e., between 5 and 12 years old) is d = -.16 and the average effect for adolescents (12 years of age and older) is d = .06.. These results suggest that prior research does not support the bilingual advantage hypothesis.

Authors

• Sergio Leiva Cardona, University of Nebraska
  Presenting Author

• Lauren Thayer, University of Nebraska
  Non-Presenting Author

• Marc Goodrich, University of Nebraska-Lincoln
  Non-Presenting Author

• Peng Peng, University of Nebraska
  Non-Presenting Author